Sweet rain

It rained last night. I woke up to the cool morning light gently misting the colors outdoors. Gone for a bit the harsh bright that leaves me squinting. Don't get me wrong, I like the sun, certainly nod to the need of it and am even happy to see it after long winter months. But it never knows quite when to shut up. It's yelling all summer long. It dislikes sleeping in. It doesn't like it when I want to sit outside with a book and my tea and hastens to send flotillas of teens, music blasting, swearing and shouting and generally being young, transporting me unwillingly from the small English village of my murder mystery into someone else's summer day. It tries to goad me into being productive, highlights the dirt on my windows if I hide inside, reproaches me for the hikes that need taking, the activities I should take up before senescence grabs my heels more firmly. It burns my skin, sears my bottom climbing into the car, makes the slides at work almost lethal. It repositions itself to shine directly into my eyes when I'm merging and wildly fiddles with the color of the stoplights so I never quite know if it's my turn at the intersection and then smirks when the honking begins. And it sends too much of itself at one time! Who needs 95 degrees? And all that rampant blue! No character to be found there to my eyes.

Ah, but the rain...soft and gentle, cloud colors and layers varied in form. Mist or drops, torrents or tiny droplets coating like etched silver the branches and leaves. Rhythmic, encouraging gratitude and exploration of the moment. The garden gleams with it's dust wash freed. The soil a pleasure to weed, relinquishing roots readily, accepting new bulbs or seeds in the dark crumbly space. The steam rising from my teacup as I work and my house welcoming me warmly into a shower after satisfying work done outdoors. This is roasted vegetable weather, marmalade making weather, baking and weaving weather. This is the weather I love to go out in, my favorite weather to sail in, my favorite weather to walk in. And of course, weather to read in. And yes, I know I'm dull :)